Inside the Institute

Great New Tablet--Nexus 7

While best known as the search engine giant that it is, Google has lots of other products and services up its sleeve. The suite of Nexus products that are designed to showcase Google features and content, including a phone, tablet, and player, are starting to get a lot of attention. Named for its 7-inch screen, the Nexus 7 tablet was developed jointly with computer manufacturer Asus. It's probably most comparable to the Kindle Fire HD that was just announced in that it's a low-priced sleek 7-inch tablet with access to a depth of add-ons. But unlike the Fire, it is the first to come complete with the latest version of Android 4.1 -Jelly Bean.

The Good:

A premium device at an affordable price. For $199 you get access to gaming, productivity, entertainment, and media applications. As it was built around Google Play (Google's new app store), you have access to over 600,000 apps, millions of songs, thousands of movies, and the largest collection of eBooks.

Thin and light so it's easier to carry, hold, and type on than most other tablets which are of the 10.1-inch variety (iPads is nominally smaller).

Google device All of the native Google apps you love and depend on are readily incorporated, including Gmail, Chrome web browser, and YouTube.

Display is vibrant and clear Text is sharp, movies are vivid, and gameplay is smooth. While not up to snuff with the iPad Retina display, it's impressive nevertheless.

Fast and fluid While you don't need to know the particulars of the hardware, it has a processor that allows for a fast and smooth user experience.

First to feature Google Now which displays info that you're likely to want such as local weather, your upcoming flight details, or your next appointment!

No proprietary port requiredfor charging - just a micro-USB connection.

An NFC device NFC stands for near field communication - and it's a set of standards that let devices communicate when they are in extremely close proximity. As an NFC-device, you can easily transfer information like an open webpage, contacts, or a YouTube videowith another NFC device like a smartphone by tapping them together in a handshake of sorts. Another cool feature: With the dedicated Google Wallet app that works off of NFC you can use your phone as your wallet.

The Bad:

Built for WiFi, not 3G or 4G data plans. While I like that this keeps the price down, I don't love not being given an option on this front. This means that you don't have access to everything everywhere - and you have to rely on a WiFi connection. You can use some forethought and make pages and magazines accessible offline - but for true road warriors this may be a contentious point.

Maxes at 16GB of onboard storage (8GB for $199, 16GB for $249) If you actively download movies and photos, you may be disappointed. And there's no microSD card slot to expand. (Google seems to be heavily pushing cloud-based activity with this device.)

No rear camera or HDMI port. You can't connect and watch content on your HDTV with a simple cable.

Content doesn't quite rival Apple's or Amazon's yet as the Google Play Store was a bit late to the game. Notably missing during my first go-through was The New Yorker, Warner Music, Fox movies, and Showtime/HBO shows.

What it's Good For:

Lounging around Whether you're sick of typing emails, reading the next few pages of your Kindle, or perusing your Flipboard pages on a small screen, you'll find the seven incher a dramatic improvement.

Taking with you Sure, you can opt for a 10-inch tablet or iPad, but it isn't as easy to toss in a small purse. And most of the other 7-inch tablets I've seen are far bulkier.

Reading For $200, you could buy a dedicated eReader, but why not spend the same amount of money for a full-featured, versatile device?

Bottom Line: While not quite perfect, it offers great bang for your buck. For just under $200 you get a pretty impressive, useful device. It looks and feels high-end and has solid performance to boot. This will definitely force other manufacturers to up the ante on their 7-inch tablets.

Good Housekeeping already has an account with this email address. Link your account to use Facebook to sign in to Good Housekeeping. To insure we protect your account, please fill in your password below.

Your information has been saved and an account has been created for you giving you full access to everything goodhousekeeping.com and Hearst Digital Media Network have to offer. To change your username and/or password or complete your profile, click here.